The Topic of Gender
by Autistic Shinra
Summary: Maka is curious about what gender Crona really is and decides to question it. [Rated T because genitals and periods are mentioned. I might just be a bit paranoid, though.] [I also am not entirely sure what genre to mark it with, so I didn't mark it with any.]


**Author's Note: So Atsushi Okubo himself has left Crona's gender unknown and doesn't actually know what Crona is? Okay, then I'll write a fic about it focusing on my gender and sexuality headcanons.**

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><p>It was something Maka was curious about. She tried not to be, as it may perhaps have been wrong of her, but she couldn't help it. She had been addressing Crona as <em>he<em> and _him_ since she first laid eyes on him, but...somehow it didn't feel quite right. And even as she called him her boyfriend sometimes, she had the feeling that he may not have been quite that. Normally, she would trust the person she was talking to would correct her if she accidentally used the incorrect pronouns, but Crona was quite shy, afraid to face insecurities, and was afraid of doing anything that might make the people close to him view him negatively or judge him.

These are the thoughts that lead up to the conversation Maka decided to start as she was sitting on her chair as Crona sat on her bed.

"Hey...Crona, I have a question for you," she asked, being slightly hesitant.

Matching the same hesitance as his girlfriend, he responded: "...What?"

"I've been wondering...what gender are you?"

The pink-haired teen's cheeks flushed slightly, and he looked terribly nervous. He fidgeted silently, keeping his eyes on the hands that were resting in his lap. He seemed to have no reply for the question—not in a way that he was trying to hide it, but more in a way that he had no words in that moment because he may not have been entirely sure of the answer himself. Finally, he said, "I...I don't know how to deal with that question... I don't know what the answer is..."

Maka hadn't been entirely expecting that. She had been aware of the non-binary genders, but it hadn't actually occurred to her how confusing gender could be for some people until she heard those words. It had seemed like such a simple topic that was obvious, as she hadn't actually known what it was like to question something like that. She had always been a girl, and that never seemed out of place for her, so she never doubted for a single moment that she was. What a simple-minded idea she had...

After a few minutes of silence, Crona moved one hand to gingerly press down between his legs, and then moved both hands up to his chest and lightly squeezed it. "Medusa always said I was a freak, you know." He began undoing the buttons on his clothes down to his waist. "My chest isn't going to get any bigger, and all the girls I know have at least small breasts. I like girls, too, and Medusa said most girls don't like other girls." He pushed his clothes the rest of the way off so he was sitting in only his underwear. "Medusa said the word for what I have is a _vagina_, and she told me that boys have a _penis_. I sometimes find small traces of black in my underwear, too, and I was told it was my blood and that it's normal for girls..."

This was a sensitive topic, as Maka was now fully aware, so she was unsure what to say next. However, it was probably better just to take a shot in the dark instead of say nothing at all. "That just means you're intersex as all. It only matters what you feel is most fitting for you. Don't base it off of what you have or which sex you like, okay? That's only going to make things harder for you."

"But Medusa said—"

"It doesn't matter what Medusa told you. Gender is in your head." With a small smile, the girl tapped the side of her head as if it would make her point more more clear. "And it doesn't matter who you like. I can like anyone, no matter who they are. Humans aren't as simple as Medusa made them sound to you, okay?"

Crona nodded and began pulling his clothes back on. "I don't know how to deal with labels—they make me nervous and I feel like I'm trapped in a box. That's why...that's why I don't mind being like this."

"No one ever said you need to fall into a specific category. The human mind can sometimes be too complicated for that, and don't forget that."

He gave another small nod. "If you say so..."

"And if you ever want to have a specific label, that's okay, too. I'll be here to help you, I promise."

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><p><strong>Author's Note: Yes, in my little section of gendersexuality headcanons, Crona is intersex and doesn't have a gender label or a sexuality label (because I'm not sure you can have a specific sexuality label if you don't have a gender, but I'm taking the statement "Talking to girls makes me nervous" as precisely what preference it sounds like), and I believe Maka is pansexual. I spend a pathetic amount of time discerning what things like that feel right... jfc**

**But anyway, please review~**


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